Padded church pew seat



R. H. PLUMMER PADDED CHURCH PEW SEAT Dec. 17,

Filed June 6I 1955'v ATTORNEYS United States PADDED CHURCH PEW SEATRalph H. Plummer, Grove Hill, Ala.

Application .lune 6, 1955', Serial No. 513,264

4 Claims. (Cl. 155-184) The present invention relates to padded churchpew seats, and more particularly to such seats wherein the paddingmaterial has air circulated therethrough.

In modern contemporary furniture, the seat surface of chairs, benches,couches, settees, stools and the like are normally padded to increasethe users comfort. pews are conventionally formed of wood, and wherepadding has been added, the seat is uncomfortably hot in surnmer, due toa lack of air circulation, thus decreasing the users comfort rather thanincreasing it asintended.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a new and improvedupholstered church pew seat which will be cool in summer and comfortableat all times.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improvedupholstered church pew seat which is attractive in appearance.

A further object of the invention is to provide an upholstered churchpew seat of the class described which is so constructed that it will notsqueak or make other noises as a result of the shifting of weightthereon.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a new and improvedupholstered church pew seat which is durable in use and which will havea cover impervious to dirt, baby wetting, and other hard uses.

Another object of the invention is to provide an upholstered church pewseat which will be less expensive to manufacture than the prior artstructures.

A further object of the invention is to provide an upholstered churchpew seat having an open framework permitting the circulation of airthrough the padding material.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a device of theclass described which is more practical in design than the prior artdevices in that no dirt collecting crevices occur in the upper surfaceof the seat and a slot exists between the seat and the back, permittingforeign material to fall therethrough rather than becoming embedded inthe seat, thus preventing the seat from becoming unsanitary.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent in the followingspecification when read in light of the attached drawings, wherein:

Figure l is a vertical cross-section of the invention taken along theline 1 1 of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 2 is a horizontal cross-section of the invention taken along theline 2 2 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 3 is a horizontal cross-section of the invention taken on theline 3 3 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary transverse crosssection taken alongthe line 4 4 of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical cross-section taken alongthe line 5 5 of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows.

New referring to the drawings in detail, wherein like Church the slat18, and the cover 35 is drawn thereover.

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reference numerals indicate like parts throughout the several figures,the reference numeral 10 indicates the end upright of a church pew. ltshould be understood that the upright 10 can be formed with any stylebase and top, as desired. The end 1li is slotted at 11 to receive a back12. The back 12 is inserted into the slot 11 at one end thereof andsecured thereto by means of fastening screws 13 passed at an anglethrough the back 12 into the end 1t?. rl`he opposite end of the back 12is secured in a similar but reversed end (not shown). The end 10 isslotted at 14 to receive -a seat, generally indicated at 15. The slot 14is sloped slightly to the rear or toward the back 12, so as to cant theseat 15, thus permitting a more comfortable position for the occupantand the movement of foreign material on the seat 15 toward the rear.

The seat 15 comprises a series of Slat-type supporting elements 16, 17and 1S. The rearmost slat 16 is formed with an edge 19 beveled so :as tobe parallel with the front surface 20 of the back 12. A longitudinallyextending upright 21 `is secured to the edge 19 of the slat 16 andextends upwardly above the slat 16 with its rear face parallel to theforward face 20 of ythe back 12. The upright 21 is secured to the rearslat 16 by means of securing elements 22.

A series of battens 29 extend transversely of the slats 16, 17 and 13and are secured thereto by means of securing elements 3%. The rear ends31 of the battens 29 exend rearwardly beyond the upright 21 and engagethe back 12. The battens 29 are secured to the back 12 by means ofsecuring elements 32. The projection ends 23, 24, and 25 of the slats16, 17 and 18 are received in the slot 14 of the end 11) and are securedtherein by fastening elements 33, passing upwardly at an angletherethrough.

A body of foam rubber 34 is positioned on the slats 16, 17 and 18 and ismaintained thereon by means of a cover 35. =It has been found that aplasticized fabric such as, for example, the fabric Naugahydemanufactured by the United States Rubber Company, is especially suitablefor this cover, although other suitable materials may be used. The cover35 is drawn under the front edge of the slat 18 and secured thereto bysecuring elements 36, and it is likewise secured to the rear face of theupright 21 by fastening elements 37. On the ends, the cover is pulledunder the batten 29 between the projections 23, 24 and 25, so as tounderlie the end battens 29 as shown in Figure 4, where it is secured bysecuring elements 38. A foam rubber pad 39 is positioned on the forwardend of The pad 39 extends beyond the slot 14, completely hiding it fromview, as illustrated in Figure 3. The securing elements 32 are coveredby a molding 41 and the securing elements 36, along with the front edgeof the cover 35, are covered by a molding 42, so that children cannotpull this edge loose with their fingernails.

It will be seen from the foregoing description, that herein is provided,for the first time known to me, a church pew seat of the kind described,which is of the utmost in sanitation, comfort, and coolness.

Having thus described the preferred embodiment of the invention, itshould be understood that numerous -structural modifications and designchanges may be resorted to without departing from the scope of theappended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An upholstered church pew comprising a pair of opposed spacedparallel upright end members, said members each having intersectingslots in their opposed faces, a back having its opposite ends secured ingenerally upright slots in each of said opposed end members, a pluralityof substantially spaced apart slat members supported in substantiallyhorizontal slots in said end members intersecting said back holdingslots, a single pad of cushioning material extending across all of saidslats, transverse saaleol battens secured to the underside of said slatsmaintaining said slats in spaced apart relation, a cover extendingentirely over said pad and secured under the forward edge of the forwardslat at one end and under the rear edge of the rear slat at the otherend, and means securing the rear ends of said battens to .the lower edgeof said back with said rear slat and cover in substantially spacedrelation to said back, said spaces between said slats and between saidrear slat and said back providing ventilation passages through said pew.

2. A device as claimed in claim l, wherein said padding materialcomprises an expanded rubber foam material, and said cover comprises awater-impervious plasticized fabric.

3. A device as claimed in claim l wherein said slats, said padding, saidcover and said battens, forms a unitary seat structure which may beremoved from the ends as a unit.

4. A device as claimed n claim l wherein the rear Slat is provided alongits rear edge with an upright cushion shaping member extending inparallel relation to the forward face ofthe back.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,703,603 Endicott Mar. 8, 1955

